What Do You Mean I'm The Captain Of A Yandere Mercenary Company? Chapter 822: Another Ship In The System

Rosalia and Friederike verified the absence of any other Psionics within my crew before they proceeded to ask the remaining girls routine questions, aiming to determine which Exo-Knights would best suit their needs.

With that data in hand, they promised to craft the most effective Exo-Knights for our squad before our scheduled departure.

Having completed that task, I found myself with little else to occupy my time, briefly entertaining the thought of enjoying a quiet, relaxing day.

That notion lasted right until the moment emergency klaxons began to howl throughout the station.

Seriously? What kind of timing is that? They really chose to launch an attack the very second we considered taking a breather...

I brought up my Codex to scan for mobilization orders, and as I expected, an alert popped up requiring me to join the defensive fleet.

With a nod to my girls, we all sprinted in the direction of the hangar.

Yumiko would accompany me onto the Verlandi, while the others were to head toward the Iridescence; after all, I didn't require a large crew to pilot my primary vessel.

"How many hostiles are we looking at?" I questioned.

Yumiko checked her personal terminal for the latest updates. "It appears they haven't confirmed the numbers yet, Mistress."

"What do you mean? How is confirmation still pending? Are more ships incoming?"

Yumiko hesitated briefly before replying, "Actually... it seems the enemies this time, Mistress, aren't Insurgents..."

I paused, confused. "Not Insurgents? Then who are they? Pirates?"

"No... it’s an unidentified vessel, Mistress. They are currently ignoring all hails. Station command suspects a potential trap, so they've escalated the security level as a precaution. It could still be an Insurgent ship hiding in plain sight."

"What class of ship are we talking about?"

"It’s a civilian freighter, Mistress."

Hmm... I suppose the level of caution is warranted. The timing of this ship's arrival is far too suspicious given the recent insurgent activity. It could very well be a ruse to lower our defenses, especially since the previous assault involved a freighter retrofitted into a carrier.

Upon reaching the hangar, I noticed a few individuals lingering around my ship, completely unbothered by the alarms blaring in the distance.

One man stood near the boarding ramp, staring into the interior of my ship with a look of inexplicable concern.

Ignoring them, I hurried past to board, only to find several other people inside, gawking at the ship's interior.

Hello?! Do you not hear the blaring alarms outside? Get out and man your stations immediately!

I cleared my throat, drawing their attention as they turned to face me.

"Can we assist you?" one of them inquired.

Are they truly so oblivious to the situation?

I gestured upward. "Do you not hear the warnings? The station is under attack right now."

The man offered a shrug. "I’m just a clerk. I don't get mobilized for station defense, so this is none of my concern."

I pointed at myself. "It is very much my concern!"

"So? That’s irrelevant to me. Why don't you go defend the station yourself?"

"You are currently standing on the ship I need to use to defend this station! Get out!"

The man jumped, startled. "O... Oh! This vessel belongs to you?"

"Yes! Now clear out, all of you!"

The group exchanged glances before their leader frowned at me.

"Wait... you intend to take this ship into combat to defend the station?"

"Is that not exactly what I said? Obviously."

"No! How could you even consider using a treasure like this? That’s unacceptable! What if it gets scratched? How could you justify flying such a piece of art into such a dangerous situation?"

I stared at him, bewildered. "Just in case you missed it... this is my ship. Who are you to question how I utilize my own property?"

"This is a Verlandi! It should never be exposed to the risk of damage! It deserves to be under constant protection, not treated like a warship!"

I narrowed my eyes. "What exactly do you think a ship is built to do?"

"It’s not a ship! It’s a masterpiece!"

"This is my ship. I won't say it again: get out."

He folded his arms, and his colleagues formed a human barrier, blocking my path to the cockpit.

"We are not letting you pass."

I glared at him. "Are you actually trying to prevent me from boarding my own ship?"

"So what? Just because it's your ship doesn't mean you have the right to treat it like this."

"What the hell? Yes, it absolutely does. Forget this—Yumiko, deal with them."

My Inucani lover cracked her knuckles before lunging forward.

She delivered a precise blow to the leader’s gut, knocking the breath from him, followed by a swift roundhouse kick to the side of his head.

He collapsed with a heavy thud, instantly unconscious.

I turned to the others. "Are any of you still intent on stopping me? You can walk off this ship on your own, or I can have you thrown out like garbage."

I hoped that would resolve the issue, but to my surprise, they moved to fill the gap left by their fallen leader, raising their fists.

Honestly? Fanatics are truly deranged.

Despite being outnumbered, Yumiko dismantled the group in seconds, effortlessly rendering them all unconscious.

Without a word, she began using her foot to roll their bodies down the ramp, treating them like discarded cargo.

Noticing the man I had seen earlier still standing by the ramp—the one clearly responsible for managing the boarding area—I could see he was at a total loss for what to do.

As the last of them tumbled to the ground, I pointed at the unconscious pile. "Record their names. These individuals are permanently banned from my ship. That is, if I even decide to keep it docked here after this incident."

He nodded frantically. "Understood! Leave it to me! Please, don't worry about them!"

It seemed he was terrified that I might permanently rescind docking privileges for everyone due to this stunt.

Well, I know that stupidity is universal, and I don't blame him for others' idiocy.

Retreating to the cockpit, I strapped in and initialized the engines, while Yumiko took her place at the gunner station.

Confirming all systems were operational, I engaged the thrusters and shot out of the station, scanning the local space for hostiles.

The defense fleet was positioned around a specific coordinate, all ships focused on a single white blip on the map.

That had to be the unidentified ship Yumiko had mentioned.

The Iridescence was still tethered, meaning my other girls hadn't reached it yet.

No matter, they could catch up later.

I pushed the throttle forward, steering toward the defense fleet.

Once within range, a communication request appeared from the same official I had worked with during the Insurgent incident.

"Miss Tera! I’m relieved you could make it! Your ship is as magnificent as ever! It’s a true privilege to see the Verlandi in action!"

I suppose there are two types of fans: the ones who think it’s too precious to use, and those who believe its true value is revealed only through battle.

I gave a short nod. "What’s the situation?"

"The ship refuses to respond to hails. We suspect it’s an insurgent trap. Scans show life forms on board, but we’re hesitant to leave the station's defensive perimeter in case they launch a surprise attack while we’re busy with them..."

That explained why the other Exo-Knights were hovering near the station. It looked like the task of investigating would eventually fall to me and my crew.